Rudi Völler shared his views on the quarter-final exit in the Europa League with the kicker. "We hoped for more, particularly in this competition. We lost to a very good team and we knew it would be difficult before the game," said the 60-year-old after the German-Italian clash in Düsseldorf. "But our performance, it's as clear as daylight, did not match our ability. We'll talk about it and analyse it. We put up a good fight but a couple of players looked inhibited."
Bayer 04 announced good news a few days after the end of the season for the Werkself: The contract with Karim Bellarabi has been extended by two years to 30 June 2023. In signing the deal, the Black and Reds have retained the second-longest serving Leverkusen player after the skipper Lars Bender – Bellarabi joined in 2011 from Eintracht Braunschweig. The 30-year-old winger has scored 31 goals and provided 44 assists in 169 Bundesliga games.
The former Werkself number one Bernd Leno has married his girlfriend Sophie-Christin after the wedding planned for early summer was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 28-year-old wrote 'Mr and Mrs Leno' under a wedding photo posted on Instagram.
Bayer 04 brought Leno in on loan for half a season from VfB Stuttgart in the summer of 2011 and then signed him on permanent terms. The Germany keeper was at Leverkusen until 2018 when he followed the call of the Premier League and joined Arsenal. Friday, 14 August will be the ninth anniversary of Leno making his Bundesliga debut for the Werkself; the 1.89 metre keeper kept a clean sheet in the 1-0 home win against Werder Bremen. Bayer 04 say: Congratulations on your wedding!
Four former Werkself players made their debut for Leverkusen on 13 August – albeit in different years. Bum-kun Cha, now 67 years old, played for the Black and Reds for the first time in 1983, won the UEFA Cup in 1988 and then retired the following year. A certain Rüdiger Vollborn made his debut for Bayer 04 at the same time as Cha. The goalkeeper went on to play for Leverkusen for 17 years and, to this day, he has a record number of Bundesliga appearances for Bayer 04 (401).
On 13 August 1994, Markus Münch, signed from Bayern Munich, made his debut for Leverkusen. The now 47-year-old stayed for two seasons before returning to FC Bayern. Exactly five years after Münch, a certain Michael Ballack made his first appearance for the Werkself. The playmaker stayed for three years but returned in 2010 to Leverkusen after playing for Bayern Munich and Chelsea. He ended his playing career at the Werkself in 2012.
The Black and Reds kick off the new Bundesliga campaign today, Saturday 29 August (kick-off 15:30 CEST), away to newly promoted SV 07 Elversberg – and the Werkself will come up against a familiar face who is currently causing a stir at ‘Elv’. For an affordable and easy journey to the Saarland, the 1,600 travelling fans can still use the WERKSELFgo car-share platform. Today’s matchday news..
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The European jersey has been launched, the UEL opponents have been drawn – and anticipation for the European campaign is running high. To mark the occasion, an autograph session was held on Friday afternoon, 28 August, at the Fanwelt with current Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and official club legend Paulo Sergio.
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The Bundesliga is back. On Saturday 29 August (kick-off: 15:30 CEST), the Werkself are away to SV 07 Elversberg on matchday 1 of the new season. Ahead of the clash at the URSAPHARM Arena on Kaiserlinde, head coach Carles Martínez spoke, amongst other things, about the importance of a successful start and the motivation of the league newcomers from the Saarland.
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On Friday afternoon, it will be decided which eight of the 36 participating teams Bayer 04 will face in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League in 2026/27. At the draw in Monaco (live on UEFA.com), the Werkself will be drawn against two teams from each of the four pots, allocated according to the UEFA club coefficient. A match against an opponent from the same country is ruled out, as is facing more than two clubs from the same national association. Here’s a look at the pots and potential opponents.
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After six and a half years, Exequiel Palacios is leaving the Bundesliga and moving from Bayer 04 to the Premier League. The Argentine, who as a Werkself player won the World Cup with his national team four years ago and finished as runners-up at this summer’s tournament, will play for newly promoted English side Ipswich Town with immediate effect. The 27-year-old, whose contract in Leverkusen was due to run until 30 June 2030, joined Bayer 04 in January 2020 as a promising young talent. He steadily developed into one of the best defensive midfielders in the German top flight.
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